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The Hindu
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Vadakadu clash cannot be reduced to law and order issue: Thirumavalavan
Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president and Chidambaram MP Thol. Thirumavalavan on Monday (May 19, 2025) condemned the police having called the Vadakadu incident a non-caste clash. He said his party opposed treating the incident as a mere law and order issue. At a protest organised by his party at Thilagar Thidal in Pudukkottai, he alleged that during the Muthumariamman Temple festival, members of the Most Backward Classes (MBCs) entered the Scheduled Caste hamlet at Vadakadu, damaged property, and torched a hut belonging to a Dalit widow during the May 5 clash. He demanded that the case be transferred to the CB-CID. 'Secure the rights' Speaking to reporters before the protest, he urged Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to issue guidelines for the Collectors and police officers to deal with incidents of violence against the Scheduled Castes. 'The government must intervene in the court proceedings to secure the rights of the Scheduled Castes to the disputed Ayyanar Temple land and the adjoining public space at Vadakadu,' he said. Condemning the registration of First Information Reports against the Scheduled Caste victims, including college students, Mr. Thirumavalavan demanded disciplinary action against the police officers concerned. 'Across Tamil Nadu, government officials and the police often fail to respond adequately when Dalits are attacked. Hence, the Chief Minister must lay down standard protocols,' he said. 'Denying the caste dimension in such acts of violence amounts to denying justice to the victims,' he added. 'Moral obligation' On the recent Supreme Court remarks in a case related to Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, Mr. Thirumavalavan criticised the court's statement that India is not a 'dharamshala' (shelter home). Giving refuge to those fleeing famine and conflict is a moral obligation of a country, he said. The United Nations had laid out guidelines in this regard. The court's remarks went against humanitarian values, he added. The Pudukkottai district police had denied permission for the protest. But the VCK obtained approval from the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court and staged the protest as scheduled. It was led by Elamathi Ashokan, North Pudukkottai district secretary of the VCK.
Indian Express
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
For Tamil Nadu polls, PMK zeroes in on Vanniyar sub-quota to rally its base
In a show of strength, the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) has warned the DMK-led Tamil Nadu government of 'extensive and historic protests' over its failure to implement 10.5% internal reservation for the Vanniyar community. 'If 2,000 (Vanniyar) youth manage to canvass 50 votes each in a constituency, we can win in at least 50 Assembly seats,' PMK founder Dr S Ramadoss said at the once-in-12-years Chithirai Muzhu Nilavu Vanniyar Youth Conference near Mamallapuram on Sunday. 'But I know many are not working hard. Your work is being monitored. If you want to do real estate business, please do it. But you won't have your position in the party,' he said. Frustration about the DMK government's failure to secure internal reservation within the Most Backward Classes (MBC) quota has become a rallying cry for the PMK ahead of the Assembly elections next year. 'We met the Chief Minister so many times. He welcomed us and assured us he would implement reservation,' said PMK president Dr Anbumani Ramadoss, the son of the party founder, referring to promises CM M K Stalin made in the early years of his term. 'Suddenly, he changed his opinion. For two years, he assured us… This is a big betrayal,' Anbumani added. PMK leaders insisted the state did not need to wait for a Central caste census to restore the quota. 'Does the Tamil Nadu government have no power to take a caste survey?' Anbumani asked. 'Then, how did your father and MGR (AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran) do it? How was the Sattanathan Commission formed by your father? And how did the Ambasankar Commission do door-to-door enumeration?' But Sunday's event was more than a political protest. It marked the reassertion of the PMK's foundational strategy: street mobilisation, high-octane rhetoric, and caste solidarity. The Vanniyar Sangam's flag was hoisted remotely by Ramadoss, followed by a drone show, documentary screenings on Vanniyar icons, and 14 resolutions, most of them echoing the long-standing demand for proportionate representation. Among the key demands of the PMK are: a caste survey by the state government, an increase in Scheduled Caste reservation by 2%, removal of the 50% quota cap, and the creation of separate corporations for every community within the Backwad Class (BC) and MBC categories, modelled on Andhra Pradesh's example. The resolutions also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for announcing a caste census and expressed support for India's military actions in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. Behind the political messaging, there was a subtext of internal tension, too. Despite sharing the stage, Ramadoss and Anbumani continued their uneasy co-leadership, with speakers notably refraining from addressing either as party president. 'I will change you or I will appoint someone to remove you,' the elder Ramadoss warned from the dais, adding, 'The party is because of my hard work. I did not have the money to run the party then. Now you are driving luxury cars.' Anbumani, seated beside him, grinned. But in his speech, the former Union Minister praised his father, reminding people about Ramadoss senior's fight for the welfare of Vanniyars for the last 45 years. This generational strain sits atop a party built on confrontation. In the 1980s, the PMK's political rise was cemented by aggressive agitation tactics. The Vanniyar reservation movement — 20% reservation in education and state services — shut down road and rail traffic in northern Tamil Nadu. Protesters blocked highways by cutting state-owned trees along village borders, a tactic that gave rise to leaders like 'Kaduvetti' J Guru (literally, 'tree cutter'), now memorialised with a statue in Trichy. A weeklong road blockade in September 1987, combined with earlier agitations and violent clashes, eventually led to the division of the OBC category into the Backward Classes and the Most Backward Classes by the DMK regime in 1989. Vanniyars were granted MBC status, ensuring them a share in the newly carved out 20% quota. But the community's demand for a further sub-quota never disappeared. In February 2021, just minutes before the Election Commission was to announce the Assembly poll dates, the AIADMK government passed a bill granting 10.5% internal reservation for Vanniyars, widely seen as a last-minute gambit to retain PMK in the NDA alliance. The reservation was carved from the existing MBC quota and framed as temporary, pending a caste-based census. The move backfired as it angered other MBC groups, including Thevars and Gounders, and was eventually struck down by the Supreme Court. The DMK, on assuming office, tried to strike a conciliatory tone. In July 2021, Stalin announced the construction of a Rs 4 crore memorial in Villupuram for Vanniyars killed in the 1987 protests. Yet, the PMK's track record remains marred by its fraught relationship with Dalits, especially in districts such as Dharmapuri and Villupuram, with notorious riots targeting Dalit villages and inter-caste tensions. Critics accuse the party of fanning casteism under the garb of social justice. In a 2013 public statement, Ramadoss infamously blamed Tamil cinema for inspiring Dalit boys to marry outside their caste, lamenting the plight of BC girls. The party, founded in 1989, emerged from the embers of the anti-Brahmin and pro-reservation movements, and at present commands influence among the Vanniyars, still the largest OBC community in the state, estimated to constitute around 25% of the population. Once a significant player in Tamil Nadu politics with 18 Assembly seats in 2006, the PMK has seen a steep electoral decline over the past two decades. From influencing alliance formations and shaping caste-based reservation debates, the party now finds itself increasingly marginalised. In 2024, it failed to win even a single seat in the Lok Sabha polls, reflecting a sharp fall from relevance and underscoring how a once-potent caste-based force has been reduced to a peripheral presence in the state's political landscape.
The Hindu
06-05-2025
- The Hindu
Dalit family's hut set ablaze during communal clash in Pudukottai village, 14 arrested
A clash broke out between youth belonging to the Most Backward Classes (MBC) and Scheduled Caste (SC) communities in Vadakadu village near Alangudi in Pudukottai district on Monday (May 5, 2025) night during the ongoing Muthumariamman temple festival. The confrontation reportedly began over a dispute at a petrol pump and escalated when members from both communities confronted each other again in a nearby residential area. The altercation resulted in multiple injuries on both sides. During the incident, a hut belonging to Dalit family and a two-wheeler were allegedly set on fire by miscreants. A video of the burning hut has since gone viral on social media. Alangudi police have arrested 14 individuals from both communities in connection with the violence. The injured have been admitted to Alangudi Government Hospital for treatment. Also read: Caste Hindus attack SC youth in Tamil Nadu for riding two-wheeler; three held Pudukkottai Superintendent of Police Abhishek Gupta, and Tamil Nadu Law Minister S. Regupathy visited the spot late on Monday (May 5) night, following which the situation was brought under control. Police personnel have since been deployed in Vadakadu to prevent further tensions. In a press release, the Pudukkottai police on Tuesday (May 6, 2025) said the clash began over a verbal dispute at a petrol station between intoxicated youth from both communities. A hut was set afire and a government bus window was damaged during the confrontation. An investigation is underway. The police alleged misinformation was being spread on social media about the incident and warned legal action will be taken against those involved in doing so.
The Hindu
06-05-2025
- The Hindu
14 arrested following clash between two communities in Pudukottai
A clash broke out between youth belonging to the Most Backward Classes (MBC) and Scheduled Caste (SC) communities in Vadakadu village, near Alangudi in Pudukkottai district, on Monday (May 5, 2025) night during the ongoing Muthumariamman temple festival. Also read: Caste Hindus attack SC youth in Tamil Nadu for riding two-wheeler; three held The confrontation reportedly began over a dispute at a petrol pump and escalated when members from both communities confronted each other again in a nearby residential area. The altercation resulted in multiple injuries on both sides. During the incident, a hut belonging to Dalit family and a two-wheeler were allegedly set on fire by miscreants. A video of the burning hut has since gone viral on social media. Alangudi police have arrested 14 individuals from both communities in connection with the violence. The injured have been admitted to Alangudi Government Hospital for treatment. Pudukkottai Superintendent of Police Abhishek Gupta, and Tamil Nadu Law Minister S. Regupathy visited the spot late on Monday (May 5) night, following which the situation was brought under control. Police personnel have since been deployed in Vadakadu to prevent further tensions. In a press release, the Pudukkottai police on Tuesday (May 6, 2025) said the clash began over a verbal dispute at a petrol station between intoxicated youth from both communities. A hut was set afire and a government bus window was damaged during the confrontation. An investigation is underway. The police alleged misinformation was being spread on social media about the incident and warned legal action will be taken against those involved in doing so.
The Hindu
29-04-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
T.N. announces fresh measures to support BC, MBC, DNC students
The Tamil Nadu government would offer basic training in Gen AI -- Artificial Intelligence to third year students residing in hostels run by the Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and Denotified Communities Department. In his reply to the demand for grants for his department for 2025-26, Minister for Backward Classes Welfare Siva V. Meyyanathan said that the training would be offered through the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation. In order to aid students availing educational loans for pursuing higher studies abroad from the National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation, the Tamil Nadu government has announced an initiative. The Minister said a loan of ₹2.25 lakh (to cover the beneficiary contribution of 15% for a loan of ₹15 lakh) each would be extended to 100 students from Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and Denotified Communities through the Tamil Nadu Backward Classess and Economic Development Corporation (TABCEDCO). The State government would also offer training on personal safety, basics in martial arts through the Department of Art and Culture and Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu, the Minister said.
